August 25, 2025
Artificial intelligence (AI) is generating tremendous buzz—and for very good reasons. Cutting-edge tools like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot are becoming essential in businesses everywhere. These AI solutions help create content, handle customer inquiries, draft emails, summarize meetings, and even support coding and spreadsheet tasks.
While AI can dramatically boost productivity and save valuable time, it also carries risks if not used carefully—especially when it comes to safeguarding your company's sensitive data.
Even small businesses face significant threats.
The Core Challenge
The technology itself isn’t the problem; rather, it’s how people apply it. When employees input confidential information into public AI platforms, that data can be stored, analyzed, or even used to train future AI models. This creates a real danger of exposing private or regulated information without anyone realizing it.
For example, in 2023, Samsung engineers accidentally shared internal source code on ChatGPT, triggering a major privacy breach. This incident led Samsung to prohibit the use of public AI tools entirely, as reported by Tom's Hardware.
Imagine a similar scenario in your workplace—an employee unknowingly pastes client financial or medical data into ChatGPT to "get a quick summary," instantly putting sensitive information at risk.
Emerging Danger: Prompt Injection Attacks
Beyond accidental leaks, cybercriminals are employing a sophisticated tactic called prompt injection. They embed harmful commands within emails, transcripts, PDFs, or even YouTube captions. When AI systems process this content, they can be manipulated into revealing confidential data or performing unauthorized actions.
In essence, AI unknowingly becomes a tool for attackers.
Why Small Businesses Are Especially at Risk
Many small businesses lack oversight around AI usage. Employees often adopt AI tools independently, with good intentions but without clear policies. They may treat AI like an advanced search engine, unaware that anything they input could be permanently stored or accessed by others.
Additionally, few companies have formal AI guidelines or training to educate staff on safe data-sharing practices.
How to Protect Your Business Right Now
You don’t have to eliminate AI from your operations, but you must establish control and safeguards.
Start with these four essential steps:
1. Develop a clear AI usage policy.
Specify approved AI tools, outline what data must never be shared, and designate a point of contact for questions.
2. Educate your team thoroughly.
Ensure employees understand the risks associated with public AI platforms and are aware of threats like prompt injection.
3. Adopt secure, enterprise-grade AI platforms.
Encourage use of trusted tools such as Microsoft Copilot that provide enhanced data privacy and compliance controls.
4. Monitor and manage AI tool usage.
Keep track of which AI services are in use and consider restricting access to public AI platforms on company devices if necessary.
The Bottom Line
AI technology is here to stay. Businesses that embrace it responsibly will unlock tremendous benefits, while those ignoring the risks expose themselves to cyberattacks, regulatory penalties, and data breaches. A few careless keystrokes can jeopardize your entire organization.
Let's discuss how to safeguard your company’s AI usage. We’ll help you craft a robust, secure AI policy and show you how to protect your data without slowing down your team. Call us at (973) 575-4950 or click here to schedule your Consultation today.